00;00;00;00 - 00;00;23;25

Lisa Hennessey 

We talk about learning how important it is, but that igniting curiosity is part is learning too. Yeah, I don't think we give that enough credit. Igniting curiosity is huge in the process. No one should tell you what to learn. It goes back to leadership of stuff like find some place that ignites your curiosity for sure, and think about why does it, and then learn about it.

00;00;23;27 - 00;01;08;25

Joanie

In this episode of Room to Grow, Curtis and I share a live in person conversation with leaders at the Wisconsin Math Council conference in Green Lake, Wisconsin. Mary Mooney from Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction, and Lisa Hennessey, the president of the Wisconsin Math Council, share thoughts connecting to the conference theme makes Call to Action Challenges Wisconsin math educators to consider how community advocacy, leadership, and learning can support students across the state and fulfilling their potential as mathematics learners. Whether you live in Wisconsin or not, you'll appreciate the passion, expertise, and encouragement these amazing leaders shared with us today. So, let's get growing. 

00;01;11;00 - 00;01;26;04

Curtis

All right so thinking is how we move. So we've now advocacy really does channel to leadership. I mean we just had that conversation right. Like you're talking about state level leadership and then empowering those locally.

00;01;26;10 - 00;02;07;27 

Curtis / Joanie / Curtis

So let's dive a little bit deeper into this call to action leadership among teachers. I mean, I've come here and seen some fabulous talks and experienced some pretty incredible mathematics. I mean, I geek out about math and a lot, how much you think, double it. I mean, about people? Yeah, yeah, these are my people talking about mathematics and  so how do we empower, teachers to see themselves then as leaders and take on that leadership, come to conferences like these present ideas that they've done and used in their classrooms?

00;02;07;29 - 00;02;27;10

Lisa Hennessey

Yeah, I think that, you know, by presenting at the conference, you know, I have, two former colleagues that actually presented for the first time at the annual conference today in their room was packed, and they said it went really well. And so I think one thing that builds up your expertise, right, is by sharing what you're doing and feeling empowered.

00;02;27;13 - 00;02;59;09

Lisa Hennessey

and one of the beautiful things I think about this conference is actually the timing of it being early May. It gives you like that extra boost to like, get through the school year trying new things in your classroom and maybe even think about what am I going to take to do for next year? I know we're thinking about empowering leadership too, and, I'm going to tap into, a board member who said to me, like, you know, I was really thinking about work life balance, and I was feeling like burnout in the classroom.

00;02;59;09 - 00;03;30;12

Lisa Hennessey

And then I ran for the board. And now I'm, like, talking to people that are doing really innovative work and from here, like, it was like it reignited my passion. And so like, I think about leadership as like, yes, it can be speaking at a conference or it could be, you know, running for a board or it could be, you know, facilitating PD or just getting engaged in local networks and communities because that can really, like reignite your passion and help you feel supported right in the work and moving forward.

00;03;30;12 - 00;03;47;22

Mary Mooney

Well, it totally speaks to your teaching. Is learning to like I. When NCSA came up with a framework of leadership of self, that's really where it starts. Like, you have to have that conceptual understanding that you are on a journey and learning, and sometimes you actually have to make your own choices about what to learn. Nobody's going to tell you.

00;03;47;24 - 00;03;54;15

Mary Mooney

And I've been in some places, you don't want those people to tell you what to learn. Do you want to make up those decisions yourself.

00;03;54;15 - 00;04;22;28

Curtis / Joanie

For sure, for sure, sure. Yeah. And I think there's so many opportunities, especially when you talk about a state conference or a very active and strong state math teacher organization. Like you all have in WMC. I remember my first early years in the classroom, and I was like, leadership. Like, I barely know what I'm doing. What are you talking about? I'm not going to be able to help anybody else, but just all of the different avenues to begin to get connected. And it kind of ties back to our community and advocacy conversation, too.

00;04;23;04 - 00;04;45;11

Joanie

So maybe you're not ready to present at a conference that's really scary to stand up in front of a room and share something that you're not even sure is good, but y'all need volunteers to help make the conference happen. So volunteer, you know, get connected. And I think that the more that you put yourself outside of your standard sort of setting, like, I mean, you need to find folks that are outside your school.

00;04;45;11 - 00;05;16;25

Joanie

You need to find folks that teach a different grade level than you do or different content than you do. It's not until you get that broader perspective that you can really see what you bring to the table. And I would just argue every person sitting in this room, everyone I've talked to this whole the whole week I've been here, it's, it's been there's great little nuggets and developing that with intention, to know that that not only contributes to our development as professionals, our personal development, but it also contributes to the development of, of the profession as a whole and of the math education space.

00;05;16;28 - 00;05;32;22

Mary Mooney

And I would say, don't ever present alone. I know so many people do, and that's fine, but a partner will really be helpful and just I can't imagine doing these presentations without partners. So that's a way to purposely connect. 

00;05;32;22 - 00;05;43;10

Curtis

Yeah it is. And it's also a way to I mean, it's a way to do exactly the three things that we just talked about and the one we're going to talk about here, just this okay. Go ahead Lisa.

00;05;43;10 - 00;05;58;12

Lisa Hennessey / Mary Mooney 

Well, I was just saying Mary and I presented yesterday together. I got it, and I was just like, oh, Mary, I learned so much. When I present with you because I get to listen to all this because we can talk to each other, right? Like when you present yourself, you can talk in your head, but, like, that's no fun, right?

00;05;58;12 - 00;06;25;02

Lisa Hennessey 

It's bouncing ideas off each other. But even sometimes in the presentation, like watching each other's moves and the different phrases they're using. And I think what I said yesterday is that you are dripping gold on to me like I was just like, here's all this gold, these gold nuggets that I can take and use in my own, you know, leadership or learning with other teachers. Right. Like, I can we can take from each other really and bring that forward.

00;06;25;03 - 00;06;32;20

Mary Mooney

The gold doesn't drip by itself. No. I mean, you were there, you were in the room. So I think you had something to do with it. 

00;06;32;20 - 00;06;44;02

Joanie

I wonder, I wonder if each of you would indulge just a little bit on your own leadership journey, because each of you started as just a classroom teacher, which I can never say that in seriousness, because a classroom teacher is an amazing thing to be.

00;06;43;25 - 00;06;52;07

All participants

We did have quotes around it, I don't think ever, you know. Sorry. That was sorry. Doesn't everybody in the room saw my my attempt at air quotes, that doesn’t translate. yeah. 

00;06;52;07 - 00;07;10;23 

Joanie

I would love for each of you to just share a little bit of like you were once a classroom teacher and now you're in a pretty significant leadership role.

So what were maybe some highlights of your journey? Or can you look back and say, oh, here was a pivotal moment. Here's the thing I did that was a risk that I took or outside of my comfort zone, that that helped me on my path.

00;07;10;23 - 00;07;45;10

Mary Mooney / Curtis / Joanie

 I well, I'll tell you a funny story. I think it's hilarious because when I was at a very small school that I worked hard to get to, and I convinced the principal that we all need smart boards, they just came out like all smart boards, like every classroom had a smart board. And I was so excited. And then, Hank Hebner said, I think you should apply for this position to be a teacher in residence and come to the university. For two years. I was like, I just got smart boards. I was so not leaving my classroom. That's just hold on. I fought for that toy, tool,

00;07;45;19 - 00;08;04;11

Mary Mooney

But I it was Hank. I was like, oh, well, if Hank is asking me, like, it really came down to a human relationship. Yep. And I was like, if he believes in me, then maybe I should do I should try it, I should try it. And that's kind of how it happened. Like, I, I so appreciate the leaders that do say, maybe you should try this.

00;08;04;11 - 00;08;28;16

Mary Mooney

Maybe you should try this because that's what I needed. I needed someone to to give me some recognition that you could be ready for your next step. I wasn't going to get there myself. I'll tell you I wasn't. but then when you come into this community, you start feeling safe and you feeling like you belong, and then it kind of happens. So if people don't feel like they're ready, you probably might be. Yeah, you probably might be somebody who probably believes you are. Exactly 

00;08;28;16 - 00;09;07;03 

Lisa Hennessy

Yeah. Yeah. And I'll say I think it is really that like shoulder tapping or really just holding my hand right. Like into it. Right. I think about a couple different pivotal moments like my third year teaching. Well first I had a great, you know, culture around me and strong math teacher leaders to work with. but my third year, we hired four new people into our district. And guess what? I was the most veteran geometry teacher. So, you know, like, you kind of just end up assuming the role and leaning in. And I'm like, what does this mean if I'm like the only one that's taught this before, with a team.

00;09;07;07 - 00;09;27;16

Lisa Hennessy

So there was like, there's been some moments like that and also just like strong. I have a strong, have strong math coach at the time who, you know, really supported me. Push me, ask questions was like, hey, do you want to speak at WMC with me at the annual conference? Like, I don't know, sure. So here we are.

00;09;27;18 - 00;09;50;21

Lisa Hennessy

You know, you you just have people that like, tell you, like, I see some glimmers in you and like, let's let's bring that forward. I really think we all have glimmers. And in all of us. And how do we look for those in each other and find that niche like, oh, this is a strength you have. Like, how can I bring you in to leadership with me, because I know that's what others did for me.

00;09;50;21 - 00;10;01;10

Music break – end of segment

00;10;01;10 - 00;11;03;01

Curtis 

I love it, I love it, and the thing that. So you brought up presenting at one of these conferences, and I know that, you know, as we come here, we come here with the idea of professional learning, you know, in mind. Right? We come to it as a professional learning experience. And I'm looking at these pillars that were put together. And it's just I mean, they flow they just flow so nicely. Right. This idea of community. Right. And it leads into advocacy leads into leadership, which now leads into leading to learning. Right. This idea of coming here, and I've gotten the experience this time to go and to, sit in some sessions. I sat in senior since, session. There's both of these sessions this time, and at the end of his first session, I showed him on my arm. I said, these are these are legitimate goosebumps because, I mean, and they were they were legitimate goosebumps. You guys, that session, we talked so much. There was so much cool, just, real life content things I had never thought of before.

00;11;03;02 - 00;11;40;18

Curtis

Things that I'm going home to go use with my my second grader this summer. I'm going to use them because I'm like, how do I how can I can use these to cultivate, curiosity in him? and so learning as a, as a piece of this, as a, as a pillar to this conference and to the, the ideas that we're doing here, I want you guys to just maybe talk a little bit about, the learning that has brought you to where you're at. And then secondly, thinking about how do we take that learning back into our classrooms and build that into our students? 

00;11;40;18 - 00;11;53;18

Joanie / Curtis

Curtis, like the two-part question I do. I really like the two-part question that is the first part that makes me think. So think about how what are the learnings that brought you here, what are the learnings and the things, and how did you get here?

00;11;54;00 - 00;12;19;06

Mary Mooney

Well, one thing I can tell you, I had a couple moments when I left the district and I went to the Department of Public Instruction. I love math, I love it if there's an opportunity to learn math, I'll take it. I kept taking all the opportunity to learn math, but at some point, there was some training where I learned about systems thinking, and I learned about implementation science, and I learned about continuous improvement.

00;12;19;08 - 00;12;37;05

Mary Mooney

I was like, wow, that's the stuff. I need it. Actually, I was good with my math content. Why was I leaning into things that I already know? And so it really took me at it. I needed to get out of the math content to really kind of go back and appreciate what my math content meant to me, if that makes sense.

00;12;37;08 - 00;12;57;12

Mary Mooney

Right? Like, sometimes you just have to leave something for a second, get a different perspective, and come back. And I found, like I honestly think I would advocate for more teachers taking a break for math and their learning and think about systems thinking. Think about coaching, think about something else, and then go back and weave that into your content.

00;12;57;14 - 00;13;18;00

Curtis / Lisa Hennessy

I love that, I love that, yeah, I think about there's just been so many beautiful learning opportunities that I've been able to engage in, and, Mary, you made me think about when I stepped in to, so I spent seven years as a high school math teacher and then five years as a for k math coordinator. Sure.

00;13;18;02 - 00;13;55;14

Lisa Hennessy 

Right. Like for k 12. Okay. That's that's scary math. And the band, quite the band. But I think what what was so interesting or where I felt I was doing so much learning was yes, in how elementary math teachers are engaged students in such depth of conceptual understanding and the mismatch between what is happening and all the wonderful strategies and ways students are thinking about math to like as they move through the system, what different expectations there are around procedures and etc..

00;13;55;16 - 00;14;20;26

Lisa Hennessy

so there is this beautiful learning there connected to the math, yes, but also just connected to how do how do I work with teachers, right. Like how do I empower our teachers? How do I ensure that we are all like just thought partners with each other in the work? And I think that that learning had sparked me into my new position where I'm working with pre-service teachers, and then now I'm doing even more learning of, okay, I got to back that up.

00;14;20;26 - 00;14;48;15

Lisa Hennessy 

I can't just say NCTM, they don't know what NCTM means right now. That's just an acronym, right? Or like different pedagogical strategies, things that I kind of took for granted in working with in-service teachers. So I just think there's all these ways to learn more deeply about math education that have just I've had the opportunity to dip back into the classroom due to some long term sub needs the last few years, which is a very real thing.

00;14;48;18 - 00;15;05;07

Lisa Hennessy 

And trying that out in real really being re humbled to in that learning experience like oh I have all these ideas now. Right. And then doing it is hard work. It's meaningful but it's hard work. And so there's I think the idea of a step away and come back is really powerful.

00;15;05;07 - 00;15;52;04

Mary Mooney

Well, and the other piece I was reminded, the other piece that just also just blew my mind, which I love so much, was I was a high school teacher, and I remember thinking learning about fractions and ratios when I was at the university and working with pre-service teachers, and it was like, wow, I can flexibly go back and forth between talking about a fraction and talking about a ratio, especially when you're working in linearity. I was like, I never made my students think about the quantities that way. Yeah, and I wouldn't because I didn't have any lessons on how to teach fractions. I never I, I complained that the students didn't know fractions, but I never knew how to teach fractions.  So when you go back as a high school teacher and learn elementary mathematics from a teaching lens, if you haven't done it, it will blow your mind high school teachers. 

00;15;52;04 - 00;16;35;15

Curtis

It really does. It blows my I've never done that. But because of being able to go to several conferences, these conferences because of being able to, do the work that we've been able to do with the podcast and then doing some of the things that I've done, at TI from like the, the, development of content and activities and things of that nature. You explore things. I mean, I was a high school math teacher, primarily AP statistics, right? So I, I knew statistic, I knew the stats world. I knew, you know, high school math from an algebra two kind of that direction up and never really thinking about for example. Right. What is the ratio. Yeah. Like I mean I use it, I could use them, I could solve problems.

00;16;35;19 - 00;17;00;12

Curtis / Mary Mooney / Lisa Hennessy

But I never really thought about the thing, the concepts at the level. Right. That that we are now expecting students to be able to have a conversation about when they're 12, right? 11. Right. Yeah. And every time I like. Right. High school math teacher works for k 12. Every time I'm in a middle school math class, I learned so much more about middle school mathematics for sure.

00;17;00;13 - 00;17;11;02

Lisa Hennessy

Wild how deep you can go in that content and how much is there conceptually, but connection wise, right. Like there's just it's amazing.

00;17;11;02 - 00;17;51;28

Curtis

And I think that's the thing that I have appreciated by going to some of these places and hearing some of that content, it has ignited my curiosity in mathematics. Right? I mean, sometimes those experiences are not connected to, a standard. Right? And I get to play in something that is maybe a fringe on the fringe, right, of the standards that we teach. But it engages me in thinking differently, critical thinking, about the mathematics. And then that draws me then able to back into maybe what are the things that I need to be able to, to teach or to learn or to talk about with my students?

00;17;51;28 - 00;18;16;22

Mary Mooney

I have to say, I just love what we said about igniting curiosity. I just made a connection. Like we talk about learning how important it is, but that igniting curiosity is part is learning too. Yeah, I don't think we give that enough credit. Igniting curiosity is huge in the process. No one should tell you what to learn. It goes back to leadership of self like find some place that ignites your curiosity for sure. Think about why does it and then learn about it.

00;18;16;22 - 00;18;38;17

Joanie

Yeah, and I just can't help but think of us from the classroom teacher perspective. And back to my 20 years that I was a classroom teacher, and that coming to conference and learning something like being genuinely curious and going to a session and learning and being all fired up and then going back to school on Monday and like, 17 kids were tardy to my first period class today.

00;18;38;19 - 00;19;01;01

Joanie

And it's a, you know, kind of right. And or like, oh, hey, I'm going to try this thing. And I try it and it flops the first time. And like, there's nobody here to pick me up again, coach me along to, to making it. So I would just love your reflections on like, okay, when we have the fall on our face moments, how do we shift those into learning experiences or how do we.

00;19;01;04 - 00;19;17;18

Joanie

It's really kind of tagging on Curtis's second part of his question that he asked five minutes ago, which is translating that learning into the classroom because it's not easy. Like, it's it's great to go to a session and the presenters like talking about something and they make it sound so easy. Right? And you're like, I can do this.

00;19;17;18 - 00;19;32;22

Joanie

And then you go back and you're like, oh, wait, really? A lot harder than that person made it sound. So I'm, I'm curious to get your reflections on that too. And how do you overcome that sort of hurdle or that frustration that comes with trying to do something different in your early learning?  

00;19;32;22 - 00;19;32;22

Lisa Hennessy

Yeah, I mean, I think that hopefully you have strong colleagues, a support network, someone that you can problem solve with when things don't go exactly how you expect.

00;19;43;28 - 00;20;00;16

Lisa Hennessy / Joanie

But I think that that failing or flopping on the first time is a good thing, because that's really where we're we're learning. And I think everything is really an experiment in the classroom in the first place. So when we try something new, it's just another experiment along the way. And then you just collect data and yeah, 

00;20;00;16 - 00;20;25;24

Mary Mooney

I just I know it's kind of funny when you ask that question too.

I, I've, I've, I've grown a lot, I think ever since the whole Joe Bowler kind of idea mistakes. I think I definitely grew up in a way where mistakes were bad. Yeah, but her work and then all the work around it has really helped me change my, my outlook. So I think when you asked that question, I was like, I don't even care anymore if I fail.

00;20;25;24 - 00;20;44;09

Mary Mooney

Like so, like, oh, well, the stakes are usually pretty low. Honestly, when I if I'm going to try something and especially when I'm like you said, it's meh. Like if something you go back and try some your students and it fails, like it'll be okay, it'll be okay. The sun is shining now in Wisconsin. Like you're gonna it's like it's it's all good.

00;20;44;14 - 00;20;58;21

Mary Mooney / Joanie / Mary Mooney / Curtis

Like it's not good. It's not gonna hold it against you. And they won't even know you failed on top of. That's true. That's the funny part. Like, I don't even think students can process that. Only you are probably processing. That's a great point. That's a great point. That really is a great point.

00;20;58;21 - 00;21;09;21

Music break – end of segment

00;21;09;21 - 00;21;30;02

Curtis

I think that leads us to kind of, maybe a time now where what I'd like to do. We have about ten minutes left in this session, and we've kind of covered the pillars of the conference, and we've talked about each of these pieces. I'm going to turn it over to. We've got a microphone over here. at the front of the room.

00;21;30;09 - 00;21;50;27

Curtis

We have about ten minutes left. I would like to give an opportunity to folks sitting in the room here who maybe through this conversation you've thought about something, maybe an experience, or a question that you'd like to ask one of us here at the table. preferably the two of them, or the three of them. Any one of them.

00;21;50;27 - 00;22;28;00

All panelists on stage

Don't ask me anything. and, you know, let's just get your perspectives on some of the things we've talked about during this session. So no pressure. I mean, if there's no questions, that's fine. But we can also call on you because we know we kind of call it it doesn't it doesn't even have to be. It doesn't even have to be a question, you know, looking out at your faces while we were asking and and listening to the answers from, these two, I, I saw some of you like answering that same question in your own head. So, if you want to share something about your own experience around community advocacy, leadership and learning, we would love to hear that too. 

00;22;29;00 - 00;22;28;00

All panelists on stage

Oh, there we go. Yes, there a hand there. You're saying, alright, we got a first person coming on up. All right. Now you're all going to line up after introduce yourself. Make sure we hear that.

00;22;39;02 - 00;22;59;09

Jennifer Lawler 

Hi I'm Jennifer Lawler, I'm the coordinator of secondary math and science for Kenosha Unified. And I'm also a member of the board of WMC and the chair of the Wisconsin Mathematics Leadership Council. So that leadership pillar is near and dear to my heart. But, I, I think what's interesting in talking about my leadership journey is, very much like Mary Ann.

00;22;59;16 - 00;23;32;06

Jennifer Lawler 

I had, a principal who knew of my interest, and sort of passion around professional learning and so kind of tapped me on the shoulder when she was creating coaching position in our school. And so I moved from being just a classroom teacher to having a coaching role. And then when she moved on to the district office and the math coordinator position opened up, then I've moved into that role, and I think and then in that role got hooked into the Wisconsin Math Leadership Council and WMC.

00;23;32;08 - 00;24;33;28

Jennifer Lawler 

And I had a former WMC president who said, so, have you have you considered getting more involved with the council? I'm all I'm really busy, I have kids, I gotta go back to school. Yeah, here I am today. Right. So it definitely is those people. but I think, you know, thinking about all those people in those roles, but also that quest for learning and the desire to continually get better and create opportunities for, for myself, for, the teachers that I support and for our students.

Right. And that comes with continual learning. and a place where I have grown tremendously is the online math teacher community, which unfortunately, unfortunately has gotten fragmented. But I think there's there's folks here that I know from Twitter. Right. Like, that's weird. Like, you're my friend because we follow each other on Twitter like we. And that's been a huge source of growth and leadership for me too, that I really love.

00;24;34;05 - 00;24;58;03

Jennifer Lawler 

But I also have a question for you. I love it. And so, we asked this and so yesterday I presented with my son, which was super awesome. At the end of our session, we talked about three wishes for to make math class better. And so I'm wondering for you, what are your three wishes to make math education better? Sort of. Maybe as a call to action.

00;24;58;03 - 00;25;24;02

Curtis / Mary Mooney

Ladies first. Oh my gosh. I think you kind of when you said ignite curiosity. Like I asked many questions. When I get asked, I go right back to my high school teacher identity. I don't go to this identity. I go to my classroom identity. but I think the one thing is that, I was curiosity was so normalized, like, I wish it was normal for kids to ask a lot of questions.

00;25;24;04 - 00;25;41;02

Mary Mooney

I think mathematics, we don't do ourselves a lot of favors. We tend to be a subject where we think we have answers because somebody's already written the questions for us. Oh, man. Right. So I would like that more of that. How do you get more curiosity into math classroom. So that's normal to ask questions. That's one we could come up with.

00;25;41;02 - 00;26;04;02

Joanie / Mary Mooney / Curtis / Lisa Hennessy

Three collectively groups that might have oh that's my favorite. I got to have two. I'm going to have to think about a different one. Well and it just connect. Something I was thinking about was how are we valuing student thinking first over right. Like answer getting. And I you know, I was in a session today where it was the answer is just the is the middle, not the end.

00;26;04;02 - 00;26;48;15

Lisa Hennessy

Right. Like the end is like the full depth of discussion. And how did you get there? And the answer is just a way to open up more discussion around it. Right. And so I think how are we valuing thinking first and engaging with the task as opposed to a product as opposed to memorization? And right, all of those things and I think there's just a lot of systemic structures in place that no matter as long as those structures stay there, we're not going to necessarily be able to ensure that all students are seeing the thinking first as their means of being a mathematical student in the classroom, or just mathematician in general.

00;26;48;20 - 00;27;16;01

Mary Mooney

So I'm going to jump on to that for a second. Sorry. I'm just no, you're good. but I think the other part, when you said systems, I think what also leaving the classroom and going at the state level, I'm really aware of a lot of systems. And one thing I remember one of the first years I was working, I was like, how teachers need to understand a lot of decisions they make are likely because there's a system behind the scenes that is kind of pushing them to make these decisions, and sometimes they're not great.

00;27;16;04 - 00;27;54;16

Mary Mooney

But I think, I one of my wish is that that people were more aware of the behind the scenes work that's going on that influences their work. One thing is our every state has to have an assessment. There's a lot going on behind those assessments. They're not going away. But I think if we fully understand the systems and how they work and what's behind them, we can better learn how to weave them in and make decisions. I think a lot of people make decisions on those assessments without really understanding what's behind the curtain, and that's one place I wish we had more behind the curtain learning.

00;27;55;16 - 00;27;54;16

Joanie

I can add my thinking, and really, I'm reflecting on the course of my career because I've been around in this space for a long, long time, and I have the joy and pleasure of my youngest son entering the profession.

00;28;08;04 - 00;28;30;06

Joanie

He's now in his sixth year as an elementary school music teacher. and it's so fun to watch him along the journey, but I can't help but kind of reflect over the course of my career and his and realize how different things are, how much has changed. And I know with the educators that I've worked with, their biggest challenges time, just feeling like there's not enough time for the teaching they want to do.

00;28;30;06 - 00;28;55;17

Joanie / Curtis

There's not enough time for work life balance. There's not enough time for professional learning. so figuring out how we make the most of the time that we can find, to take care of ourselves, to take care of our kids, that would be that would be my wish. So I think if I have a chance to answer this question, I'm going to pull the three of your answers together into like a two.

00;28;55;18 - 00;29;16;12

Curtis

Right. Because so one was a summary of the right. Well, no, I was I was sitting here thinking about. So you already know I'm a math geek, right. So I geek out about this stuff. So the curiosity thing is huge for me. but because of the systems and the things that are in place, I don't often get to explore that curiosity piece.

00;29;16;12 - 00;29;36;09l 

Curtis

Right? Because usually the systems are driven by the time. Time means right. And so because we have x, y, z standard, we have to teach because it's going to be on the assessment. It's going to happen here and it's exposed in this way. The questions are written like this. So I need to give you 50 of these so that you guys have, well practice those things.

00;29;36;11 - 00;29;59;17

Curtis

I don't get to do the curiosity things I don't get to explore. And so my original answer before I heard the three of your answers was going to be really, I would love to see more, ability to take data and variability and things that we can explore and utilize those to teach our our math subject areas. Right.

00;29;59;17 - 00;30;24;24

Curtis

The things that are important in, in those, in those spaces. So that was going to be my original answer. But I think even more than that, to broaden it, I would love I would love there to be an opportunity for students to drive. Where do we go? What questions do we answer? What kinds of things are they curious about to learn about?

00;30;24;24 - 00;30;41;15

Curtis / Joanie

Right. If we had the freedom to be able to do that, I think that would be what I would wish for. And I don't know if I have a good wrap up for the rest of this session. We have about two minutes, left in this session. So maybe if we have. Do you want one more? Yeah, let's do it.

00;30;41;15 - 00;30;59;12

All panelists on stage

Let's get one more. Do we have one more? I'll. Come on. Can they yell out their questions? They can yell and we can repeat it. All right, Dave, you want to come to the come to. I got that one. I was going to Voluntold you anyway. You knew what was coming, so you knew it was coming. You just cut me off and I appreciate that.

00;30;59;12 - 00;31;15;13

Dave

And this way I get to ask what I want to ask instead of you volun-telling me you got what you want me to ask. So. So you guys talked a lot about about learning. And when you talk learning in an audience like this, you're preaching to the choir. These are people have given over themselves, given their time to come to this conference.

00;31;15;13 - 00;31;38;12

Dave

But we all know of, many colleagues who have never been to something like this. And, and all of us feel they're missing out. And, so, so my question for you is, how do we balance this, this idea of, like, continual learning in our careers, this growth that we we all should have and we all want to have and we all want our colleagues to have with, with this burnout that teachers feel.

00;31;38;13 - 00;32;05;18

Dave / Lisa Hennessy / Dave

We know teaching is a difficult gig. And, you know, personally, you know, I've heard people the last few days just talk about how invigorating this conference is. How do we how do we spread that feeling amongst all math teaching colleagues. So we keep them in this wonderful important profession. Well thanks for your question. Yeah. You have you have one minute, I have one minute grant.

00;32;05;21 - 00;32;24;05

Lisa Hennessy

Solve it 35 minutes. All right. You're cutting into my time okay. So here here's what I, I think that what you're saying is really important. And it goes back to what I said about another member of the board who said, you know, like she's talking about work life balance and feeling that burnout. But by adding a little bit to her plate, right.

00;32;24;05 - 00;32;47;01

Lisa Hennessy

And it reignited her passion. And so I think that like, maybe it's not really even adding to your plate. and I've been trying to work with folks about really viewing, teaching life as more of a symphony. Like, I think at different moments in time, different instruments take the melody. And so that's how I feel about, like my life, right?

00;32;47;01 - 00;33;16;24

Lisa Hennessy

And Summer Ultimate Frisbee is playing the melody like, that's just what's happening. But, you know, during the school year or, you know, the months leading up to this conference, you know, I might be really engaged and work is, you know, the trumpets and they're really loud. I don't know, I'm just making this up right now. But I think that but I do use the symphony analogy a lot, because I think that it's not necessarily about a balance where there's a hard line between work and life.

00;33;16;24 - 00;33;43;01

Lisa Hennessy / Mary Mooney

I think we are all, if we are who we are as human beings, like we are who we are genuinely everywhere. And so I, I try to instill that amongst my colleagues, at least for learning and trying to, you know, say we're all just on this journey of life and how can we keep moving forward? I feel like I'm I want to say I don't have an answer, but I feel like I'm accepting your challenge, Dave.

00;33;43;03 - 00;34;00;28

Mary Mooney

Like, I, I, I we've wrestled with this in the past. We know we reach like maybe a third of the teachers. Even in the district where I taught, we knew that we weren't reaching some teachers, but I'm, I'm, I think you're just making me challenge myself to figure out why is that so like, I think you're right. Like it's it is a work life balance.

00;34;00;28 - 00;34;15;03 

Mary Mooney

But I wonder if there's more if I formed a relationship or really talk to people who aren't able to go. If I really learn more about why, why they're not able to take advantage of it. So that's my answer to your question is I accept your challenge.

00;34;15;03 - 00;34;32;20

Curtis

I love it, Mary. I think that's I think that's something for all of us to do is accept the challenge, right, of saying, hey, I can go develop a relationship with a colleague or colleagues and be able to find out why. Maybe I like that. I like that a lot.

00;34;32;20 - 00;34;57;15

Lisa Hennessy

Well, and continuing through that relationship. Right. Like sometimes it's just is every day you give the opportunity or every year you give the opportunity. And one year it happens. Right. So like how do we also ensure that our colleagues are seen and valued by us as partners and continue to right tap their shoulders, grab their hands and just see if they'll come along with you, I love it.

00;34;57;18 - 00;35;20;10

Joanie

Me too. I don't have anything to add because they gave brilliant answers and we're at time too. So, I just want to say thank you so much. Everybody in the room has answered the call to action by being here. Appreciate the value of this conference and the opportunity to share time together. Thank you all. Thank you, thank you, thank you.

00;35;20;13 - 00;35;50;17

Joanie

Well, that's it for this time. Be sure to check the show notes for the resources we mentioned and others you might want to explore. We would love to hear your feedback and your suggestions for future topics. And if you're enjoying learning with us, consider leaving a review to help others find us and share the podcast with a fellow math educator. See you next time!